


The Girl Who Lived In Three Castles

by LaceyBarbedWire



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe, Durmstrang Student Harry Potter, F/F, Female Harry Potter, Grumpy!Harry, Harry Potter was Raised by Other(s), Just guessing, Light Angst, but I don't have a ship yet, most of my fic are gay, probably gonna be gay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-21
Packaged: 2021-03-22 16:01:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30041187
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaceyBarbedWire/pseuds/LaceyBarbedWire
Summary: In a world where Vernon Dursley has a friend in low places and Dumbledore is...competent but busy putting out fires in the wake of Voldemort's defeat, Harriet Potter gets put into an illegal adoption 'agency' on the continent. Join her as she grows up, goes off to Durmstrang, and discovers that the Potter name looms large even when you don't know it's your name.
Comments: 64
Kudos: 96





	1. Chapter 1

It was an uneasy Vernon Dursley that walked into the dimly lit pub. He was no stranger to pubs, but this was his first time coming to do something that was...well illegal. He’d done shady before, but this was very different. There was a moment where he hesitated, then he shook his head bullishly. He had to though. This was important, he had to do it. For his family, for Dudley. So he walked towards the back corner, sliding into a booth across from the only man in the pub as large as he was. 

“Ah, Vernon, good to see you!” The large Russian boomed, grinning and sliding a beer across the booth.

“It’s good to see you too Boris.” Vernon said, a bit uneasy still but grateful for the beer. That wasn’t the man’s real name he knew, but it seemed to amuse his friend to be called such and he wasn’t going to get into a fight with a mobster over names. 

It was strange, in his opinion, someone like him being friends with a violent criminal (though more than a few of his employees would have disagreed with that assessment). The man’s...organization was fond of Grunnings’ drills, and he’d arrived one day to discuss with Vernon a large purchase, which he wanted at a steep discount. Nobody had bothered to tell Vernon what exactly the man did (he’d missed a discrete memo) and so he had responded with a less than pleasant attitude towards what he merely saw as a cheapskate foreigner. Boris had mistaken his ignorance for cheek though, and responded with genuine amusement at the ‘brave’ businessman. It’d be a stretch to say they were close, but Vernon spent a night at the pub with the man every few months. 

“What can I do for you my friend?” Boris asked as Vernon took a long gulp of his beer. “You said you needed a favor?” He raised an eyebrow at this. Generally the most criminal thing Vernon ever did was spend time with Boris. Asking for a favor was new. Vernon nodded quickly.

“Yes.” He said, resisting the urge to glance around the pub. Boris was careful with things, no need to look guilty. “My wife’s sister and her husband died recently.” He began. Boris inclined his head.

“My condolences.” Vernon jerked his head in thanks. It really wasn’t the time or place to get into Petunia’s issues with the late Potters. No need to complicate things.

“The problem is, my wife’s sister was part of a rather...insular and weird community. And they had a daughter. A one year old daughter. Their friends dropped her off at our house. Left her swaddled on the doorstep with a letter. A  _ letter _ . We can’t take care of her, we’re having enough trouble with Dudley.” Boris raised an eyebrow at this again. He knew Vernon’s financial situation well, and that Petunia was a stay at home mother who was proud to be such. But he didn’t comment. It wasn’t his place, nor his business. “I...I know your lot does...adoptions. I want you to take the girl, find her a different family. Preferably on the continent, so they can’t find her and put her back with us.” 

Boris blinked a few times, staring silently at Vernon. Being asked to traffic a child was  _ not _ the favor he’d expected to be asked. But, he could do it. If a baby was being placed on a doorstep to begin with, that made the whole thing easier. The girl being left with the Dursleys was illegal to begin with. She might not even have proper records. Much simpler than usual. 

“I can do this.” Boris said finally, nodding. “But you owe me. Moving a child like this, especially across borders, is risky, very illegal, harsh sentences.” Vernon nodded quickly.

“Of course, of course, I didn’t expect any less.” He assured the man. Boris hummed, then nodded, clapping his hands.

“Okay then! It will be taken care of. Now, let us drink, and speak of more pleasant things. How is Petunia, aside from this unpleasantness?”

**One Week Later**

Albus Dumbledore sank into his chair with a long sigh. It was the first time he’d been able to let himself relax since Voldemort’s death. Reconstruction was messy business, and victory didn’t mean normalcy was immediate. It had been difficult after defeating Gellert too, but he didn’t remember it being this hard. Perhaps his age was catching up with him, or perhaps it was just that he’d been more entrenched in this war overall. Regardless, the Ministry had picked itself up enough for him to take a short rest. 

He closed his eyes, then opened them again as something intruded on his mind. He hadn’t checked on young Harriet recently. It had been a week since he left her with her aunt and uncle, and while he’d glanced at his monitoring device a few times in the early days, he’d been distracted by the tragedy of the Longbottoms. He let out another sigh and stood up from his chair, walking to his devices, tapping one with his wand. His brow furrowed at the results, and he checked the device carefully for any problems before tapping it twice more. Each time however the results were the same. It couldn’t find Harriet. Either Lily’s protection had somehow adapted to block out his monitoring, she wasn’t with her aunt, uncle, and cousin anymore, or she had...died. He moved to another device, tapping it as well, and frowned as it reported that the protection had faded, gone dormant for lack of a better term. 

His first instinct was to go to the Dursleys’ himself, but he dismissed that. It was still morning, and he was aware that he stood out in Muggle company, even dressed as them. Appearing himself would only antagonize Petunia and her husband, and make it harder to get answers. No, he’d send someone else, and look into the possible culprits from another angle. He walked over to his fireplace, gathering a handful of Floo Powder. Minerva would not be happy about this.

And indeed, once she’d arrived in his office and heard the news, she was  _ not happy. _ “What do you mean she’s gone?” She snapped, eyes blazing. Albus shook his head slowly.

“Something has happened. I do not know what, exactly. The protections placed by Lily’s death still guard that house, but they have gone dormant. That means she is still alive, but has gone quite far from the house indeed. She hadn’t spent long enough there for them to latch onto the house properly.” He rubbed a hand over his eyes. “I need you to go there, in Muggle clothing. Watch them in your animagus form for some time, then, if you do not see anything, confront them directly. We need to find out what happened to Harriet.” Minerva nodded shortly.

“And you Albus?”

“The protections should have kept the Death Eaters out, but I do not know how well they would have guarded against a Muggle they coerced. It would stop the Imperius, but perhaps not if the Muggle went in under threats. I will go to Azkaban, and speak to Sirius. He may know something.” Minerva scowled.

“And you think he will talk?” Albus gave a small shrug.

“Truthfully I do not know, but even if not I might still glean something from the encounter. He was never the most subtle person.” He paused, frowning. That was a point on its own. There was...something...off with Sirius’ betrayal, but he didn’t know what it was. Another thing to consider. 

**One Hour Later**

Albus scowled as he stood before Sirius Black’s cell, glancing at the Dementors. He twitched his wand, and his Patronus moved further afield, pushing the hooded entities away. Really he felt vaguely insulted by the insistence of the prison staff that he be accompanied by them. Did they really think he was in danger here? Surrounded by the weakened and dazed prisoners in their cells?

Though Sirius seemed...unusually stable, even for a man who’d been in his cell for a little less than a week. The young man looked at him. “What’s the matter Professor?” He asked dryly, voice weak but taunting. Dumbledore looked around, then flicked his wand, putting up a privacy barrier. This was not something that needed to reach the public ear. 

“Harriet has gone missing.” He said bluntly. “I was wondering if you might have something to say about that.” What blood had been in Sirius’ face drained, and he sat upright. 

“What?” Dumbledore frowned.

“Harriet was placed in a home after the events of this last Halloween. It was heavily warded, but she’s gone now. I was hoping you might be willing to offer up some theories as to how that happened.” He watched Sirius intently, stone faced as the young man grasped the bars of his cell door and got his face as close to Dumbledore’s as he could.

“You...how could you let that happen?” He demanded. Dumbledore sighed.

“I was rather distracted by your cousin’s actions.” He said. “As well as the general chaos that comes with cleaning up a war. They were the strongest wards I could imagine, and only two other people besides me knew her location. I thought I could leave her be for a short time. But clearly I was mistaken. I know she still lives, but not her location.” 

“You have to get me out of here Professor.” Sirius pleaded. “A trial, I need a trial. With Veritaserum!” Dumbledore paused, mind running through the events since Sirius’ arrest. He realized then that no, the man had not actually gotten a trial. It had been rushed through by Crouch, before his recent, disastrous drop in popularity and with it influence. Another addition to his increasingly large list of failures and mistakes. “I was willing to stay in here, but not if Harriet’s in danger!”

“If you’re innocent, why would you wish to stay in here?” Dumbledore asked carefully. Sirius let out a noise that could be considered laughter, if one were charitable.

“I’m not innocent. I’m the one who persuaded Lily and James to make that...that rat bastard the Secret Keeper instead of me. It’s my fault that they were betrayed, even if I didn’t betray them myself. This…” He looked around his cell and swallowed. “This is just. But not if Harriet needs help. I was an auror, and a damn good one. Get me out, and I’ll find her.” Dumbledore paused, staring deep into Sirius’ eyes, then nodded. 

“I’ll get you a trial, with Veritaserum. If you’re being honest with me Sirius, we will discuss where to go from there.” He said finally. 

“Thank you Professor.” 

**Four Hours Later**

Dumbledore sank into his chair once more. It had been a hard fight to get Minister Milicent Bagnold to allow a trial for Sirius, but at the end of the day he had more political clout than her, or anyone else in the Ministry for that matter, and she knew it. It had twisted his stomach to use such methods, but ultimately he knew it had been necessary. He’d managed to keep Harriet’s name out of it, focusing on the fact that if they were wrong about who Voldemort’s spy and right hand had been then there was still a potentially serious threat out in the world. The thought of being the Minister who let the Dark Lord’s spy walk free had spurred Milicent to agree to not just have the trial but to fast track it, and to approve the use of Veritaserum. As the head of the Wizengamot Dumbledore could do that himself, but it was helpful to have her support on such matters.

There was a flare of green flames, and Dumbledore looked over to see an unusually drawn and angry looking Minerva stepping through the fire. His concern grew as she ignored him, going straight for his liquor cabinet instead. He watched silently as she opened his oldest bottle of scotch, a gift from the Flamels, and poured herself a glass, downing it all before pouring a second.

“Minerva?” He asked cautiously. She turned and looked at him and conjured a chair, one as soft and plush as his own, much to his alarm. “I take it the news is bad then.”

“They...sold her.” Minerva bit out. “Or donated her to someone to sell rather.” She took a long gulp, and eyed the bottle like she was considering drinking directly from it. “Muggles still have a black market for adoptions, did you know?” Dumbledore blinked, dismay open on his face. He had kept an eye on the Dursley’s, for Lily’s sake. Petunia may have hated Lily, but the hatred was not mutual. At least, not enough that Petunia wouldn’t have been an adequate hostage to draw Lily (and likely James) out. And while he’d considered the Muggle couple to be unpleasant, he hadn’t considered them so much so that they’d do something so...unsavory. 

“They were reluctant to talk.” Minerva admitted. “But after I transfigured their couch into a tiger they gave me answers.” 

“You didn’t…”

“Neither of them were harmed.” She said, shaking a head. “Didn’t even let it swipe at them. But its presence was enough to get me a name, and that the...the transaction happened three days prior.” She made a strangled noise. “Apparently they  _ paid _ extra to shuffle her around once she left the country, to make it harder for  _ us _ to find her. They paid someone to hide their niece.” She shook her head and finished off the scotch in her glass. “What are we going to do, Albus?”

“Sirius...is quite possibly innocent.” Dumbledore said after a long moment of silence. “I have secured a trial for him, one that will be happening shortly. Should it go well, and he proves to be innocent, he’ll set out to hunt down and find Harriet. Possibly with Alastor’s help, if I can find a good excuse for him to join the hunt to tell the Ministry. If he’s innocent, we’ll let Sirius decide who tells Remus. But it has to be kept a secret beyond that.” 

“Because Molly will murder us in our sleep if she finds out?” Minerva asked dryly. 

“Because if the news gets out there’ll be a panic.” Dumbledore replied. Then he twitched his lips in spite of himself. “But also...yes.”

**Three Days Later**

The man Vernon Dursley knew as Boris was relaxing in his flat, watching television while nursing a glass of vodka and debating calling for a woman when his door was blasted down. He jerked, eyes wide, but before he could do more than begin to move for his gun his body went still. He collapsed back onto his armchair at an awkward angle, stiff as a board and helpless. He watched as the figure, a tall, well built, young man, waved a stick and the door went back into place, trapping him in the room with his attacker. The man waved his stick a few more times, muttering under his breath all the while, then walked over to Boris.

“Hello there Boris.” He said, with an unnerving manic cheer to his voice. The gangster watched as the young man twirled his stick, and thick black chains formed around his body. The intruder sat down on the ottoman, staring at him. “We’re going to have a talk about a baby you recently...relocated for one Vernon Dursley. I’m going to need to know everything you know. And, to avoid the bluster you might be boldly conjuring up…” 

The man waved his stick...his wand, Boris realized, this was some sort of wizard. He waved his wand, and casually set a stack of newspapers Boris had let pile up on fire. A second wave froze the paper and the flames. A third wave turned the frozen mass into a large, growling dog. A fourth wave somehow cleaved straight through the armchair Boris was on, barely missing him but leaving the mobster thinking of samurai movies all the same. The young man raised an eyebrow, then waved his wand one more time, and Boris felt the stiffness leave his body.

“I’ll talk. I’ll tell you everything.” He promised. The man grinned, and it sent as much fear through Boris as the displays of magic had. 

**Six Years Later**

Alessandro Brambilla, professional hit wizard for the Italian Ministry of Magic, cursed as he ran through the fields. Three trolls had been spotted leaving their normal range, out of the Alps and into the farm land at the base of the range. Two of the trolls were accounted for, dead before they could do more than ruin some crops and kill a goat, but one had been a bit faster, a bit craftier, and gotten away. That might have been the end of it, if they hadn’t heard the screams. 

He leapt over the fence, and stared with dismay at the sight in front of him. A young child knelt on the ground, shaking the body of an adult he assumed was her father, the body of what he guessed was her mother close by. He swallowed, then glanced around. Not seeing the troll, he nodded at his partner, Lorenzo. He’d comfort the girl, but somebody needed to keep looking for and deal with the troll. 

“Hey there little one.” Alessandro said gently, moving slowly at a crouch towards the girl. She stared up at him, eyes a vivid green behind her glasses. “Can you tell me what happened here?” She sobbed, then slowly nodded. 

“I was helping Mama in the kitchen when we heard noises and Papa shouting. Papa flew out of the field and landed here, and he didn’t move. Mama ran out...she told me to stay inside but then a monster came...and then it hit Mama…” She dissolved into tears at that point, shaking her head and shoving harder at her dead father’s body. Alessandro swallowed. This happened occasionally, being too late to save everybody, but it hurt him every time. Especially when there were children left in the wake. 

“Little one?” Alessandro looked up, frowning as he saw Lorenzo walking back to them. “What happened to the monster?” Alessandro wanted to yell at his partner for asking a grieving child what had happened instead of using his own senses, but something in the other wizard’s face made him stop. The young girl swallowed, and looked up at Lorenzo. 

“I...I followed Mama outside, and saw the monster hit her. I screamed, and I ran back for the house but it...it followed me. It scared me, and I didn’t want it to hit me. If it hit me I wouldn’t...wouldn’t be able to help Mama and Papa. So I...closed my eyes, and when I opened them, there was ice in the monster.” Alessandro blinked and stood up, trusting Lorenzo to keep an eye on and comfort the girl, and walked to the back of the house. Sure enough, there was the corpse of the troll, an icicle so large he could only think to call it excessive impaled through its chest. 

In spite of himself he whistled. Accidental magic could do some crazy things. Things that would require an immense amount of skill and power for someone to do consciously. Still, even by that standard this was impressive. He ran a hand through his hair as he considered the realization that the girl was a witch, despite her parents. As much as he hated to think it, it might be for the best. They wouldn’t have to alter her memories for one thing. Painful as they’d be, it’d be for her benefit in the long run to remember the death of her parents, memories like that had a tendency to fight obliviation and cause trauma subconsciously. For another, the Ministry could just  _ do _ more for a witch child then they could for a Muggle one. 

He sighed and walked over to the girl, quietly pulling out his wand. “Come on little one, let’s get you somewhere safe.” He murmured, casting a sleeping charm before she could react. He wasn’t about to drag a child away, kicking and screaming from her parents’ bodies, but he also wasn’t about to try and logic her into leaving them to instead come with some strangers. He scooped up her limp body, nodding in thanks as Lorenzo began putting stasis and privacy spells on the bodies and the farm as a whole. They’d arrange a funeral and everything else later, when there was time. As he carried the little girl off, Alessandro noticed a lightning bolt shaped scar on the girl’s forehead and let out a small hum, wondering how she’d gotten such a uniquely shaped wound. It was far from the most pressing matter, but still, he couldn’t help but wonder it’s story.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Harriet (now named Sofia) finds a new family and some things about the world are discussed.

Mateo Marino let out a sigh as he walked down from the uppermost room of the Rowdy Roc, the inn of Troll’s Dam, the northernmost Wizarding town in the Wizarding Republic of Italy (or WRI for short). He knew that most other nations overseen by a Ministry only had a few purely Wizard communities (Britain rather famously only had one) but being so close to the seat of Papal power in the Dark Ages had resulted in a more-insular-than-usual Wizarding community that grouped together for safety, often relocating to congregate and creating a rather decent web of towns and villages. There were Wizards in Muggle cities of course, Rome had a thriving community and even the nearby Vinci had a handful of families. These days he’d say it was about half and half between those living in pure Wizard communities and those living among or near Muggles.

Honestly he didn’t know how the Brits did it. Having towns of nothing but Wizards made it so much easier for the Ministry to field agents wherever they needed it. Apparition helped of course, but that required a fair bit of precision, one couldn’t apparate directly into the Ministry’s headquarters, and in terms of communications it wasn’t as expedient as the Floo Network. And as a member of the Department of Child and Family Welfare, he certainly felt he could do his job better by living in and having his office out in the district he served rather than working in the Rome headquarters.

Case in point, the young Muggleborn girl brought in by the hit wizards this afternoon, after some nasty business with a troll that had managed to cross the northern border. Poor thing. He’d done his best to comfort her when she woke up. She wasn’t the first child orphaned by tragedy he’d had to comfort in his career, and while it broke his heart every time he was a bit of an expert at it. He’d managed to get her back to sleep, and now, in another room of the inn, was writing out his report. Relocating an orphan was hard, and a Muggleborn required even more paperwork. They’d have to find out if she had any family (the girl had said she didn’t, but a traumatized seven year old was not the most reliable source for information) which would be a bit harder to manage since it’d require accessing the Muggle records, and from there they’d either have to work on explaining things to said family safely or getting her into an orphanage. It was a lot of paperwork to do, but he’d rather do that than deal with abusive parents or the like.

As he gave instructions to his quill however, the door to his room opened. He looked up, frowning in irritation. He’d given a specific request to the innkeeper that he was not to be disturbed, and any colleague of his should know better. He hadn’t locked the door, so any problem with the girl, Sofia, could be dealt with quickly, but the point remained. 

His frustration died at the sight of the woman who entered however. She was tall and pale, with thick black hair that hung free and bright blue eyes. She was beautiful, regal, and, Mateo knew, remarkably dangerous. He quickly stood up, bowing.

“My lady, to what do I owe this honor?” He asked, swallowing.

Vittoria Chiara Bellarosa, Princess of the WRI’s northern neighbor (only neighbor by land, given that Sicily was an island) the Alpine Union, gave him a nod in return. “Please Agent Marino. It is my people’s fault that your work today is necessary, there’s no need for undue ceremony.” Mateo didn’t know if he agreed with the latter half of that, but he wasn’t about to argue with the wife of one of the Wizarding World’s most powerful heads of state, so he sat back down. Vittoria waved her wand, conjuring a firm chair of her own, and sat down, facing him.

“Firstly, I apologize for not arriving sooner. Even with magic, communication from our southern border to the capital takes time. More seriously, I formally apologize on behalf of the Alpine Union for this tragedy and that your work is necessary at all.” She bowed her head. “We will of course pay for the time of your hit wizards, your obliviators, and you, as well as any other agents the WRI deems necessary in cleaning up from the recent troll attack.” Mateo nodded in understanding.

“That’s very generous of you my lady.” He said earnestly. The princess shook her head.

“It is no less than duty and honor dictate. The trolls came from the Alps, it was our responsibility to redirect or kill them once they left their usual territories. The need to steer Muggle mountain climbers away from our more dangerous wildlife stretches our rangers thin, but that is ultimately an excuse at best.” She then let out a long hum, and finally said, “I heard there was an orphaned child. Muggleborn.” Mateo nodded. 

“Yes my lady. I was working on the paperwork regarding her case when you entered.” 

“If she has relatives then we will issue a stipend to help take care of her, and ease the burden on the family for having to take in another child.” Vittoria said calmly. “If she does not, I will take her back to the Alpine Union. If she takes to me and my wife we will adopt her, if she doesn’t she will be fostered to another family.” Mateo blinked, eyes wide.

“My lady, that is incredibly generous…” He began.

“Once more we shall have to disagree on what is generosity and what is merely decency.” Vittoria rebutted. 

“Be that as it may, Sofia Ricci is a citizen of the Wizarding Republic of Italy…”

“A fact you yourselves would not have known for another four years or so.” She responded dryly. Then she raised an eyebrow. “I’m offering to give this child a home in the immediate future, should she be without others to take her in. Are you truly going to argue that she should be placed in an orphanage instead, just hoping that somebody will give her a home at some nebulous future date?” 

“I...uhm…” Mateo stammered. This possibility had never come up before, not in his training nor in any of his manuals. She made a point, but he didn’t think he could just hand over a child. “I would need to speak to the Head of my Department.” He said finally. “That will take time, and there will be paperwork.” Vittoria gave a thin smile.

“I am the Princess Consort, not the Queen Sovereign, and we are discussing the potential heir to the throne of the Alpine Union. I have plenty of time.” She said, waving a hand dismissively.

**Two Days Later**

Sofia stirred restlessly as she sat on the bed she’d been given. It was a nice bed, nicer than her own, but she didn’t want to be here. She wanted to be home. Her parents...her parents would be getting better soon. The nice man who talked to her and brought her her food and books and things said they were gone, but that didn’t make any sense. Her parents wouldn’t just _leave_. They loved her. They were just hurt, but they’d get better soon and be back for her, she knew it. 

The books the nice man had given her to read were nice at least. She liked how the pictures moved, though sometimes it was weird to open the book up and not find anybody there. And he’d given her an interesting marble set, where each marble stuck to the ones it hit, but only when she flicked them. She didn’t know quite what to do with them, but they were all pretty colors, and it was fun to try and make pictures with them.

Still, there was only so much she could do, and she wanted to go home. Before she could get herself too worked up though, there was a knock on the door, and a moment later it opened to reveal the nice man again.

“Hello Sofia.” He said, voice warm and gentle. “May I come in?” She nodded quickly, closing her book, and he approached her, making a chair from the air again. Sofia had been very surprised to see him do it the first time, but after the events of the last few days she wasn’t ready to be too shocked. He sat down in the chair and smiled at her, though she thought his smile looked sad. 

“Sofia, we need to talk about your future.” He began. “Your parents didn’t have any siblings, right? No aunts or uncles?” He’d asked her this before, and Sofia had said no, so she didn’t know why he was asking again. But she wasn’t a combative child, and so she just shook her head instead of saying anything like that. “Right, well…” He paused, and Sofia thought she could see wheels spinning in his head for a moment. It made her want to giggle. “There’s a lady here that would like to meet you.” He said finally. “If you like her, she’d like to take care of you, since your parents can’t.” Sofia frowned. 

“Why?” She asked curiously. 

“I think it’d be best if she told you. Is it alright if I let her in?” Sofia paused, then nodded, pushing her glasses back up her nose. The nice man nodded and stood up, walking over to and opening her door. Sofia’s eyes widened as a tall, pretty lady in a blue dress entered the room, nodding at the man before making her own chair with her own magic stick. She smiled at Sofia as she sat down. Sofia liked her smile. It was a pretty smile. 

“Hello Sofia, my name is Vittoria.” The woman said, nodding as she spoke. 

“Mr. Marino said you wanted to take care of me?” Sofia said slowly. Vittoria nodded. 

“Yes, that’s right.” 

“Why?” Vittoria opened her mouth, then closed it for a moment before speaking again.

“I owe your parents a great deal.” She said finally. “More than I can repay. And I don’t believe any child should have to grow up without parents, or a home.”

“But I have parents, and a home.” Sofia said stubbornly. “Mama and Papa…” Vittoria winced, glancing and Mr. Marino before leaning in. 

“Sofia, do...do you know what death is?” She asked, voice gentle. Sofia swallowed and didn’t answer. “I...I’m afraid that when that monster attacked your parents, it hit them with its magic.” The woman said. “They went to sleep, and they can’t wake back up. And nobody else can wake them up either.” 

“I...I know what death is Miss Vittoria.” Sofia said quietly. “Papa kills chickens sometimes, for dinner. But...but they can’t…”

“I’m so sorry child.” Vittoria said, gently reaching out and putting a hand on the bed, close to Sofia without touching her. “But they are. I wish they weren’t, but they are.” Sofia sniffled, then choked, then began to bawl. 

As the tears began to flow and the sobs began to pour out of her, other things happened as well. The glass of water on the bedside table froze solid. Both adults in the room had their hair turn a dark blue. The books hid themselves in the closet and the marbles formed a giant mass. Vittoria looked a little alarmed at this, but Mr. Marino just leaned in, gently rubbing Sofia’s back. 

“There there child, let it all out.” He said, voice soothing. 

“W...why did that monster attack us?” Sofia sobbed. “We didn’t hurt it!”

“They’re like wolves dear.” Vittoria said, voice gentle. “It’s not your family’s fault.” She tensed and swallowed briefly, then reached out, gently tipping Sofia’s head up by the chin and smiling once more. “It’s going to be okay dear. Eventually. I promise.” Sofia shook her head and then threw herself at Vittoria, hugging the woman tightly. The princess’ eyes widened, then she gave a weak smile and began rubbing the girl’s back, doing her best to make soft, soothing noises as she let Sofia cry. 

**Three Days Later**

Vittoria stood, somewhat stiffly, behind Sofia as the girl placed flowers on the freshly dug graves of her parents. This was all quite new to her, trying to parent. Hell, trying to comfort a child at all was new. There were orphans in the Alpine Union of course, and part of her overall duties was maintaining the orphanages and making sure everything was going well there, but there was a difference between making sure orphans were being taken care of and not abused and trying to actually comfort and take care of one. 

In a perfect world she and her wife would have probably waited a while longer to procure an heir. They were relatively young after all, and while they’d like to have a child in the next decade or so there was no pressing need for one. But the world was far from perfect, and the child’s orphan status was on their heads. True, neither of them were personally on the front lines, but still they ruled the Alpine Union, and it was their charge to keep the monsters within its borders in check. She’d meant what she said. Honor, duty, and decency required that they take care of Sofia. If she wound up hating them, or hating the pressures of being their daughter, then they’d do what they could to find her a different family to take care of her, but for the immediate future she was under their care.

Vittoria made a mental note to get some books on child rearing. She didn’t _want_ to be a distant, awkward, parent of obligation. She wanted to be a good mother. She just...didn’t really know how, her own mother had hardly been an ideal example. She’d learn though. For Sofia’s sake, she’d learn. 

As the child in question straightened up, there were a trio of pops in the air behind the two witches, and Vittoria nodded. They’d made provisions to take care of the Ricci family farm. Spells and wards had been put up to preserve the property, particularly the house itself and the Ricci graves, as well as to keep Muggles away, and had likewise paid for the memory of the farm and its family to be removed from the surrounding Muggles. It hadn’t been cheap, but given their culpability Vittoria and her wife had agreed that it was worth the investment. 

And while it wasn’t cheap, it was still a bare drop in the bucket. The Alpine Union was one of the richest nations in the Wizarding World. Where other Wizarding nations had made treaties with the Goblins in the old days, the Alpine Union (or rather, the tribes that would become the Alpine Union) had made _alliances_. The union of Goblin and Wizard magic had allowed them to get far more use out of the mountains than any other nation, Muggle or Magical, could have. For every one Muggle mine in the region there were four Alpine Union mines, all defended to the absolute gills by every magic the two races could think of. 

And even when the mines ran dry there were other uses for the mountains. Not least of which were banks. Goblin banks were the most secure _and_ most lucrative in the Wizarding World (and possibly the world, period) and they had more than any other nation. The Swiss banking industry had been created by Alpine Squibs in fact. 

So yes, while protecting the Ricci farm to ensure that Sofia would have a home if she decided the Alpine Union was not for her as an adult, or a family remembrance place if she stayed, had been costly, it wouldn’t put a dent in the budget. Nor would the three beings Vittoria had arranged to more actively take care of the place.

“Sofia.” She said, gently putting her hands on the girl’s shoulders and guiding her to turn around. “I would like you to meet Moory, Vonbey, and Conkey.” She pointed at each in turn, as the girl’s eyes widened behind her glasses at the sight of the three House Elves. “They’re part of our household, and are trained to take care of farms. They’ll make sure your parents’ farm is taken care of, even when you’re not here.” She’d been relieved when she’d gotten three volunteers. The Ricci farm wasn’t large, but truth be told she was a little unclear on exactly how much work went into taking care of a farm. The house had been connected to the Alpine Union’s Floo Network, and the House Elves could request whatever they needed, but still. Having three agree to take care of the place made her feel much better about the whole situation.

“Don’t you worry about a thing, Miss Sofia.” Moory said, stepping forward. She was the oldest of the trio, and their leader. “We’ll take good care of your family’s farm for you whenever you’re away.” Sofia swallowed and nodded.

“Thank you Miss Moory.” She said politely, giving a shaky smile. “My Papa always said farms needed to be growing new things to be healthy and good.” 

“Aye, your Papa was not wrong there Miss Sofia.” Moory agreed, nodding. “We’ll make sure the fields get harvested this year, and that they don’t go fallow after.”

“If you plant things, you can keep the money when you sell them.” Sofia offered. “I don’t mind.” Moory gave a little shiver and shook her head.

“Don’t you worry about that young Miss. House Elves don’t take money. We get our own rewards from working with Witches and Wizards, as I’m sure you’ll learn when you get older.” She leaned and winked. “We might eat some of it though!” She giggled, and Sofia gave a weak giggle of her own. Vittoria was glad to hear the happy noise from the young girl, and she gave Moory a deep nod. 

“Thank you again for volunteering for this Moory, Vonbey, Conkey.” Moory waved her thanks off. 

“There’s no need to thank us Lady Vittoria ma’am.” The House Elf said firmly. “We’re happy to serve. Besides, this is exciting!” There was a twinkle in the old Elf’s eye. “My family’s handled the same farms for the last thousand years. I’ll be the first to get to take care of something new!” The two elves behind her nodded rapidly in agreement, and Vittoria gave a smile. She was glad they were happy at the very least. 

“Then we shall take our leave, and let you get acquainted with the farm.” She said, nodding to each before guiding Sofia back into the house. She lit the fireplace with a wave of her wand, then grabbed some Floo powder from the pot. The fireplace itself was much larger than it had once been, remodeled to allow for Floo travel. It’d be a bit slower, but she wasn’t about to drag a seven year old through the less than pleasant sensation of Apparition. If she kept her eyes closed, travelling via Floo at least wouldn’t be _too_ terrible for the child.

“This is called Floo Powder.” Vittoria said, crouching down so Sofia could see the handful of powder in her hand. “When I throw it in the fire it’s going to turn green and let us travel safely to your new home, okay?” Sofia nodded slowly. “Now, it’s going to be loud, and a little uncomfortable. I’m going to need you to keep your eyes and mouth closed, and hold onto me _very_ tightly, understand?” Sofia nodded again quickly, and Vittoria smiled. “Alright then, here we go.” She turned to the fireplace as the girl gripped her tightly around the waist, and threw the powder into the flames. “Monte Rosa Castle.” She called firmly, before grasping Sofia and stepping firmly into the now green flames.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there everybody, thank you so much for sticking with this fic and reading this! I appreciate it a lot!
> 
> So uhm...I don't speak Italian. Like, not at all. Got some learning disabilities, makes it nearly impossible to learn other languages. So if any of the names of characters were the Italian equivalent to Cho Chang, please let me know in the comments, with suggestions on how to fix them up. I did my best, but I'm not going to just assume I nailed it. Likewise, I went with the English for things like place names, country names, and Muggle/Muggleborn cause, well, if the rest of this fic is being 'translated' into English it didn't seem to make sense to leave bits of Italian in.
> 
> As for the fic itself, if you have questions about the Alpine Union, don't worry, a lot of that's going to get addressed in the next chapter as Harriet/Sofia learns about her new home! Feel free to ask questions and I'll try and work them into the next chapter though, happy to world build and explain things! 
> 
> As before, if you have any questions/comments/concerns or overall reviews, please leave a comment below and I will definitely read it and respond! Thank you once again for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Sofia meets the Queen, explores a castle, sees a city, and Vittoria vents some anger.

Sofia found the Floo travel to be one of the worst things she’d ever felt, only salvaged, barely, by Vittoria’s comforting presence. The adult was a tall, firm presence that anchored her through the hot, whirling experience that was travelling via Flood powder. So she was rather relieved when the pair staggered out and onto the soft rug in front of the fireplace. 

“Honey, we’re home!” Vittoria called out. Her eyes were bright and there was a sense of glee to her that Sofia hadn’t seen before. A moment later a woman entered the room, an immediate study in contrasts. Where Vittoria was tall, she was rather short. Where Vittoria had long, loose black hair the other woman had hair so blonde it looked white, done up in a controlled bun. Where Vittoria had bright blue eyes the other woman’s were an almost dull grey. The only things they had in common were that both were rather beautiful. 

“If that phrase is to be a recurring theme with you then we will never stay at a Muggle resort again, no matter how much you love jacuzzis and television.” The other woman said firmly. “And should it persist regardless, I will be forced to obliviate you.” Despite her tone and words, Sofia thought she noticed a smile tugging at the blonde lady’s mouth, and a lightness in her eyes. 

“I’m sure you will.” Vittoria agreed readily, embracing the other woman and kissing her on the lips. Sofia blinked, watching with wide eyes. Vittoria had said from the start that she had a wife, but it was one thing to hear about it and another thing to see two women kissing. The two separated, and the blonde turned to Sofia, crouching and giving a small smile. 

“Hello there little one. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Bianca Matilde Bellarosa. I’m sorry I couldn’t come to meet you earlier, I’m afraid...”

“Bianca has a real job.” Vittoria finished with a grin. Bianca shot her a  _ look _ , then sighed.

“Vittoria and I are both royalty, but I am the Queen Sovereign while she is the Princess Consort. It means that of the two of us, I have the busier workday I’m afraid. I just want you to know that if I spend less time with you than her, it’s not that I don’t like you, or that I’m avoiding you, it’s just that I have to work more and I have to do it in specific parts of the castle.” Sofia nodded slowly.

“Like how Papa worked outside but Mama usually stayed near the house.” She said. She paused. “Are you going to be my new Mama?” Bianca gave a slight, sad smile.

“If you want me to be. Vittoria and I aren’t going to force you to do anything dear. We’d like to adopt you, but we’ll let you take some time to get used to us, and to living here. If you like us and want to stay here, then yes, I’d be your new Mama, but if you don’t like it we can find you somewhere else.” Sofia blinked a little, then slowly nodded, pushing her glasses up. 

“Okay. Thank you.” She said, seriously, giving a slight bow. People bowed to queens, right? Bianca’s lips twitched up in a smile.

“You don’t need to bow to me dear. Not while you’re living here. If nothing else, there’s no need for you to act more adult than my own wife.” Vittoria winked at Sofia from where she was standing behind Bianca, and Sofia gave a little giggle. She liked how Vittoria was acting now. She wondered if it was like how Papa was always more serious around the neighbors then when he was home with her and Mama. Bianca gave a little sigh that Sofia thought was more fake than real, then stood up.

“I actually managed to secure the rest of the day off.” She told Sofia and Vittoria, smiling at each. “If you’d like, I’d be happy to take you on a tour of the castle with Vittoria.” She held out her hand, almost shyly. Sofia paused for a moment, then smiled shyly and took the offered hand.

“Yes please.” She paused. “Do you have books?” Vittoria chuckled as she took Sofia’s other hand, and Bianca gave a soft smile. 

“We have an entire library.” She told Sofia. “Come, we’ll show you.”

**Three Hours Later**

Sofia felt vaguely dazed and more than a little tired as she was sat at one side of a table not that much bigger than the one at her family’s farm, though more ornate and pretty looking. The tour of the castle had been rather long. It was the biggest building she’d ever been in she was pretty sure, even bigger than the grocery store. 

The first place they’d gone to had been the library, though Vittoria and Bianca had pointed out various paintings along the way. Bianca had favored the ones she said were important rulers and leaders, while Vittoria had happily pointed out the warriors and Goblins with an odd gleam in her eye. Sofia wasn’t too surprised when the paintings bowed, curtsied or nodded at them, not after the picture books at the inn, but she  _ had _ been surprised by the fact that they talked back, greeting the trio, asking who Sofia was, occasionally scolding Vittoria for being more interested in their military accomplishments than their legislative ones. The adults had taken it all in stride however, so Sofia did her best to do so too.

The library was bigger than her family’s house, Sofia was certain. She couldn’t imagine ever reading all of the books in it, but it was still exciting to see and to look at. She’d run around it, as Bianca and Vittoria pointed out how the library was organized. Vittoria had pointed out a part of the library that was blocked off, a glowing golden wall keeping it from everything else, and told her quite seriously that she wasn’t allowed in there, that it had books of dangerous magic that she couldn’t see until she was older. Sofia had nodded wide eyed, and had been rather happy when they lead her away to where the stories were.

She hadn’t had time to read though, as they’d soon left to show her the other parts of the castle. There was a room full of wooden statues, targets, and even some old weapons that Vittoria explained was for self defense practice, something she’d have to learn herself. Sofia had nodded seriously, remembering the monster that had attacked her family. Then there was the room that looked like the night sky but all the time, which Bianca had apparently made herself. She’d explained that it didn’t really  _ do _ much and they weren’t going to force Sofia to spend time there, but if she was interested Bianca would be happy to teach her about other planets and stars and things when she had time. 

There was a room for making potions, and a room for growing plants with a ceiling that glowed bright, and a room full of statues of Bellarosa ancestors, and then there were rooms for parties and getting dressed in and what felt like a million other things that Sofia couldn’t quite keep track of. Both had been very quick to assure her that she didn’t need to memorize the whole castle, and that if both of them were busy she could ask a House Elf or one of the paintings for directions. Sofia wasn’t sure she’d ever be up for asking a painting for directions, but she’d nodded anyway.

And now they’d been seated in the dining room for, well, dining. Vittoria grinned at Sofia as she sat down. “Lovely thing about magic, you can make things as big as you need them to be, if you’re willing to put in the work.” Sofia blinked.

“What she means is that this is a special room, prepared by the builders of the castle.” Bianca explained as she sat as well. “It changes size, and the size of the table and number of chairs, depending on how many people are present.” Sofia’s eyes widened, and Bianca gave a chuckle. “It’s very complicated magic to do though. It requires a lot of time, energy, and space. So this is the only room in the castle that has that power.”

“I’d have used it for something different myself, but I suppose in the old days there were a lot more big important dinners.” Vittoria said dryly. “Certainly saves the House Elves some hassle I suppose. Speaking of which…” Sofia’s eyes widened as food appeared on the table. There were three plates in front of each of them-two small and one medium. Bread and salad appeared on the smaller plates, while a pasta dish Sofia didn’t recognize, with red sauce and meat mixed in, appeared on the medium plate. Likewise her glass suddenly had water in it, while Vittoria had a red wine and Bianca a white.

“You can ask for more when you’re done, if you’d like.” Bianca told her as she speared some salad with a fork. “We have plenty, we won’t stop you.” Sofia gave a shy smile as she tore off a piece of bread. 

“It’s okay, I don’t eat a lot.” She said politely. 

“And that’s fine too...within reason.” Bianca said, nodding.

“Everything has to be ‘within reason’ with you.” Vittoria teased. 

“Excuse me for caring.” Bianca responded, though there wasn’t any bite to it. She glanced at Sofia. “I was thinking, if you’d like, that next week we could go visit the city of Grand Combin. It’s one of our larger settlements, and reasonably far from our border with the Fisher Kingdom.” Sofia blinked.

“The...Fisher Kingdom?” Bianca winced. 

“Yes, sorry, I forgot that you’re new to all this, you’ve been handling everything so well.” Sofia blushed at the compliment. “The Fisher Kingdom is our neighbor to the west. In Muggle terms they’re France, as well as...four other countries?” She glanced at Vittoria, who nodded.

“France, Belgium, Monaco, Spain, and Portugal. Used to be ruled by the Fisher Kings, now they’re ruled by the Phoenix Queen.” Sofia’s eyes widened.

“That’s so big!”

“Magic lets us travel faster, talk to each other faster, and keep things like roads, water, and food supplies in good shape. Makes it easier to keep big countries together than it is for Muggles.” Vittoria explained, taking a sip of wine. 

“Right. But we don’t get along well with the Fisher Kingdom. You’ll learn about that once you start history classes.” Bianca explained after swallowing a bite of pasta. “We haven’t been at war for some time, but still, I’d like to keep you away from the towns closer to our border with them for a bit.” Sofia stared.

“Is it dangerous?” She asked, voice small. Bianca’s eyes widened, and she quickly shook her head.

“No, it shouldn’t be. I’m sorry, I worry too much.” She said hurriedly. “You don’t need to be scared, not here.” She reassured Sofia. Sofia slowly nodded, and got a small smile from Bianca. “The most dangerous thing in the Alpine Union is Vittoria, don’t worry.” Sofia blinked at that. She’d seen the black haired witch be a few things since meeting her. Awkward, worried, kind, sad, silly, happy. She’d never seen her be  _ dangerous _ though. “Dragons and monsters run when Vittoria goes to war.” Bianca said, nodding seriously, though her eyes twinkled with amusement and pride. 

“You’re going to trick her into thinking I’m some sort of badass!” Vittoria complained, huffing at Bianca. 

“Language.” The blonde said firmly. “And you say that as if the person most convinced of your own skill isn’t you.” Vittoria paused, then grinned. 

“One of these days I’m going to trick you into thinking I’m humble, or at least upset with you.” She said playfully. 

“Unlikely.” Bianca said, chuckling. “In all seriousness though dear,” She said, refocusing her attention on Sofia. “I’m just a little nervous, and there’s nowhere safer you could be in our country, and maybe even in all of Europe, than at Vittoria’s side. There’s no danger here, not now.” Sofia slowly nodded, and Bianca gave her a small smile. “But like I was saying, I can arrange some time off next week, and we could go visit the city of Grand Combin. It’s one of our larger settlements, and you could get to see what they look like. Would you like that?” Sofia thought it over. She liked the castle, but she’d always liked when Mama and Papa brought her into town. And maybe seeing new things would help her spend less time thinking about the sad old things.

“Okay.” She said, nodding and giving a small smile. “That sounds nice.” Bianca gave a smile back, nodding.

“Good, I’m glad. I hope you’ll like it here, both in the castle and in our country.” She said, voice gentle, before returning to her food.

**One Week Later**

Sofia bounced back and forth on her feet. She had been right, staying in the castle  _ had _ been interesting, but she also felt more than a little cooped up. There weren’t any other children in the castle for her to play with, and there wasn’t anything for her to  _ do _ besides read and sometimes exercise with Vittoria. The House Elves did all the chores, and they usually did them before she could even find something dirty to take care of! Not that Sofia  _ liked _ doing chores, but her life on her family’s farm had always been so much busier. 

She’d told Vittoria as much, and the older witch had just laughed and told her that they’d get her ‘good and exhausted’ soon, it was just taking them a bit of time to find tutors for her lessons. And for all that Vittoria insisted that she didn’t have a real job and was just there to be pretty, Sofia found that she was busy an awful lot. Not as busy as Bianca, who Sofia rarely saw outside of breakfast, dinner, and when the two were tucking her into bed, but more busy then she liked to say.

That meant that Sofia was often alone, and bored, and when she was alone and bored and things were too quiet she started thinking about her Mama and Papa and getting really sad. She’d taken to talking to the portraits, asking them about their lives and for interesting stories, or else interviewing the House Elves when they had time. She liked the nice little creatures, even if they were weirdly fond of cleaning and doing housework. 

Still, Sofia was quite excited for the chance to go out and see a new place. She thought a city in a mountain sounded rather dark and spooky, but it was still something new! 

“Are you planning on taking up Irish dancing?” Vittoria asked playfully, glancing as Sofia bounced in place. Sofia huffed. 

“I’m just excited, don’t be silly!” 

“That’s a losing battle dear, I’ve been trying to get her stop being silly since we were betrothed.” Bianca said dryly as she entered the Floo room. 

“Maybe even longer!” Vittoria said, grinning and nodding. Bianca chuckled and kissed her cheek, then looked at Sofia. 

“Now, are you ready to travel by Floo again? It’d be slower, but we  _ can _ travel by other means.” She offered. Sofia shook her head though. 

“I want to do Floo. I should try and get used to it.” She said firmly. Bianca gave her a kind smile and nodded. 

“Alright then.” She walked over to the grand marble fireplace and opened an ornate jar, plucking a handful of powder and tossing it into the flames. “Grand Combin!” Once more the flames turned green, and Vittoria quickly grabbed Sofia, stepping into the flames, Bianca close behind. 

The Floo trip was, once again, rather unpleasant, but Sofia managed to get through it all the same, staggering out with Vittoria onto thick carpet. She looked around eagerly, but from what she can tell it looked almost exactly like the room she’d just left. Bianca must have noticed her disappointment, because she chuckled. 

“Don’t worry dear, this is just the VIP arrival room. While most of our settlements are self-sufficient, there’s still plenty of travel and trade between everywhere, and much of it is done by Floo. This keeps us out of the way of that, so we don’t interfere but also don’t have to wait in any lines.” It also alerted the city guard to the arrival of members of the nobility (or in this case, the royal family), but Bianca didn’t think Sofia needed to know that. No need to worry the child unduly, she’d have time to adjust to the fact that their rank and status required security later. 

“Yeah, no worries, this way kiddo. We’ve got a grand sight for you.” Vittoria said with a chuckle. Bianca raised an eyebrow at the joke, but decided to let it lie. There were more important things, and she knew that her wife always got a little extra wound up right before she had to go into a different ‘face’.

Vittoria opened the door, leading Sofia onto a balcony. The VIP Floo Port was at the top of an eight story building, and when one stood on the balcony they could see all of Grand Combin. Sofia gasped, eyes wide behind her glasses as she stared out at the city. It was the largest settlement the girl had ever seen, a vast expanse of buildings that ended at a massive white wall, and beyond those walls were green fields and forests. And she could see it all because, somehow, when she looked up she didn’t see the inside of a mountain but the sky, blue and clear with the sun shining down.

“Magnificent isn’t it?” Bianca said as she closed the door to join Vittoria and Sofia on the balcony. “It’s an old spell. It takes an immense amount of magic to make it work, but Goblin runes help minimize it enough to make it worth it on grand scales like this. This is what let us build our mountain cities, to build farms and orchards and lumber fields within the mountains. It helped our people to stay self-sufficient but also to stay hidden from the Muggles. It meant we never had to relocate as they expanded, and could stay and grow and improve.” Sofia looked up at Bianca, and saw a soft but fierce pride in her eyes as the Queen looked out over her city. 

Then Bianca crouched beside her. “So, what would you like to see first?” She asked, smiling. “There’s the main shopping district, a couple of museums, a grand park, and the wall.” She paused. “Well there are other things, but we don’t have a lot of time today, and if we wanted to see a play we’d need to have reserved tickets.” Sofia stared, a little overwhelmed by the options.

“Uhm, a museum sounds nice.” She said finally. Bianca smiled and nodded, suppressing a chuckle as she saw Vittoria visibly force back the urge to call them nerds. Her wife had slipped into ‘happy but in public’ mode, and while Bianca wouldn’t have minded if Vittoria behaved the way she did at home in public she knew better than to try and force such things. Vittoria’s upbringing was strong, and her wife liked her masks. Best to let that dog lie.

**Two Hours Later**

Vittoria stood behind Sofia and Bianca, only partly listening as Bianca told her the tale of the Goblin architect the statue they were looking at depicted. It wasn’t that she was uninterested, or that she didn’t love her wife’s voice. She’d just heard this before, and she’d never been the best at book learning. She needed to be active, to be moving. But, she forced herself to remember, this was about Sofia. Part of being a  _ good _ parent was adapting to and understanding your child’s interests, and Sofia was an inquisitive, quiet child interested in learning everything she could about the world she’d found herself brought into. 

She smiled softly as a fascinated Sofia dragged them over to a stuffed dragon, staring with wide eyes at the creature as Bianca explained its history and how they differed from Muggle stories. She’d spent a fair amount of time with Sofia since bringing the girl to the castle. Some days more time than she got to spend with Bianca, if you didn’t count sleeping. Not as much time as she’d like, but that was the result of being the Princess Consort. The time she’d spent in the WRI with Sofia hadn’t helped her workload, but she couldn’t bring herself to complain. Not when Bianca had such a larger workload most days, nor when it had been done in the name of helping the child her people had failed. 

Rather suddenly, she was jolted from her thoughts by an explosion. Her eyes widened at the screams that followed, and the second explosion followed by the sound of spells shattering stone nearby. Probably not some potion brewing disaster then. “Back to the castle, now. Apparate.” She ordered, drawing her her wand (Mountain Ash and Dragon Heartstring, 13 inches). It wouldn’t be the best for Sofia to go through side-along apparition, but it would be worse for her to get caught up in...whatever the fuck  _ this _ was. 

Bianca nodded once, firmly, and grabbed Sofia, disappearing with a loud crack. The minute her wife and Sofia disappeared (it took a force of effort to not think of Sofia as her child, but she didn’t want to get ahead of herself) Vittoria felt the dark part of her rise up, and she let it, letting out a growl. She didn’t know if this attack was a coincidence, or the most poorly planned out assassination attempt in the Alpine Union’s history, but one way or the other heads were going to roll. 

She stepped out of the museum and glanced in the direction of the spell-fire. The city guard had responded already, that was good. Still, they could use a little help she imagined, and she had some anger to work out besides.

She disapparated, and reappeared at the back of the battle, silently waving her wand. A stone hand grew out of the ground, pinning a nearby witch to the ground. That one she’d keep for interrogation later. The others though…

“Where’s the Queen?” Vittoria glanced to her right carelessly, seeing a wizard with a necklace of Grindelwald’s symbol around the man’s neck. She let out a scoff, twitching her wand just enough to put an invisible shield charm between them. 

“Grindelwald’s Zealots? You fools, really?” She asked. Of all the idiots that could have been behind this, it was the remnants of the imprisoned Dark Lord who was attacking? 

“Where’s the Queen?” The man repeated angrily. 

“Not here.”

“Don’t lie to me! Everyone knows you two travel together. Now tell me where she is, or this gets painful.”

“She’s gone. Left, the minute you lot started making explosions. Not even in the city anymore.” 

“Impossible, you can’t apparate when the wards go up, and they went up the minute we set those explosions!”

“She’s the goddamn queen, of course she can go wherever she wants.” Vittoria told him, rolling her eyes, tracking the rest of the battle, trying to figure out where she was most needed. There were maybe fifteen of the terrorists. Not nearly enough to conquer the city, which meant either they had a target, this was a hit and run fear spreading plan...or they were stupid enough to still be fighting for Grindelwald’s dream a little over forty years after the man himself had been defeated and thus stupid enough to think they’d win the day. 

“Well maybe she’ll come back when I make you  _ scream _ you little tart…” Vittoria decided she’d had enough and waved her wand without looking, turning the shield into a burst of energy that destroyed everything but the man’s feet upon impact. 

“Now then.” She murmured, waving her wand once more, this time in a more intricate pattern than before. “How about…” She thrust her wand forward, and the stone beneath one wizard’s feet turned to liquid, swallowing him as he shrieked. A second wave and a witch turned into a ruby statue seconds before she could kill a fallen guard. A third wizard was swallowed by a cloud of darkness that shivered and jittered and spat out clean bones before vanishing. 

“It’s the Princess!” One of the wizards shouted, pointing as someone finally noticed she was present. She felt a strange mixture of gratification and disappointment as the terrorists dropped their wands, nearly in unison, and raised their hands. The benefit of her reputation was that sometimes it stopped bloodshed before things got too bad. The downside was that she had to struggle with and force her darkness back down as she was left unsatisfied. She gave a minute shake of her head, forcing herself to focus on the benefits, and joined the guards in chaining prisoners and snapping wands.

“Captain.” She said, nodding at the wizard in charge of the guard as he bowed to her. “Can your men handle the clean-up, or do you want my help?” The man quickly shook his head.

“No my lady, we can take care of things. Thank you for your aid.” Vittoria nodded again.

“Duty and honor.” She said simply, getting a nod from the guard captain in return. “I must return to my wife. But, in an hour or so, the Queen will be visiting. I will have to stay behind, to look after our ward…” at that the guard captain blinked, news of Sofia hadn’t fully spread yet “so if you can’t spare the guard for a full protective detail by then let us know via Floo if you would.” The man bowed again. “Rest assured that Grand Combin will have the full support of the Crown in clean-up, repairs, and other expenses, and will readily review any plans you or the Lord Mayor draw up to help prevent another such attack. Do keep us informed if you manage to find out  _ why _ these fools decided to attack.” 

“Of course my lady.” Vittoria nodded, then disapparated, reappearing on the balcony of the VIP Floo Port. She quickly stepped inside, then leaned against the wall, taking some deep, calming breaths to center herself. The last thing she wanted was for Sofia to see her darkness. Once she felt appropriately calmed she walked over to the ornate jar of Floo Powder and grabbed a handful. 

“Monte Rosa Castle.” No sooner did she step through the flames and out the other side then did Sofia collide with her, latching her arms tightly around her waist. Vittoria let out a little oomph, but quickly began stroking Sofia’s hair. “Shh little one, it’s okay, I’m here.” She glanced at Bianca, mouthing ‘One hour’, then looked back at Sofia after her wife nodded. “I’m okay, didn’t even come close to getting hurt.” 

“What happened?” Sofia asked, staring up with wide, worried eyes. 

“Some very silly people made a very big mess because they were angry.” Vittoria told her simply. “But they weren’t scary or dangerous, and they stopped once they saw me glaring at them.” Sofia...probably didn’t need to know more than that she reasoned. She was a bit too young to be hearing about Vittoria killing people, or about Grindelwald in general really. When she was older, and not still recovering from watching her parents die in front of her, maybe. 

“You promise you’re okay?” Sofia asked. Vittoria smiled and nodded, brushing some hair out of the girl’s face.

“I promise. Everything’s fine dear, and it’s going to stay that way, don’t you worry.” Sofia studied her face, then must have seen something because she nodded and hugged Vittoria tightly. Vittoria and Bianca shared a small smile, and Vittoria felt some of the darkness go away, perhaps for good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody! Thank you for reading this! 
> 
> I concede I don't have a lot to say this time, nothing immediately springs to mind as needing to be addressed her. I just wanted to thank y'all for reading! As always, feel free to put something in the comments if you have any reviews/comments/questions/concerns! Thank you so much!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Sofia officially becomes a princess, learns things about her new world, and gets accepted into Durmstrang. Meanwhile Dumbledore and Sirius try to figure out their next step.

Sofia took a deep breath as she stared at the door to the dining room. She’d been living in the castle for a little over a year now, spending time with Vittoria, with Bianca, and the castle’s inhabitants. She’d started taking lessons, and had met with the children of the Alpine Union’s nobility and politicians. She’d even say she’d made some friends from them. All in all, her life was pretty good. She’d even say she liked her lessons. 

Which made what she was about to do all the more nerve wracking. Over time, as days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months, Bianca and Vittoria had stopped adding the qualifiers indicating that she was free to be asked to move to a new family whenever they suggested something. At the same time though, she wasn’t  _ formally _ adopted yet. She was still Sofia Ricci, ward of the Queen and Princess, not Princess Sofia Bellarosa. And she thought she was ready to ask for that. But she was worried a bit. That maybe she’d mess everything up. Maybe  _ they _ were supposed to ask  _ her _ , rather than the other way around? She frowned and shook her head. She was thinking too hard, something Vittoria often playfully accused her of. Everything would be fine. Probably.

She entered the room, finding Bianca and Vittoria both waiting for her. The table was its usual size, which was good. She hadn’t wanted to ask what she was about to ask in front of others, even if she also didn’t want to put off asking for too much longer. Both women smiled at her, and she smiled back a little weakly as she sat down, soup appearing a moment later. 

“How was your day Sofia?” Bianca asked, looking over at her. “Learn anything interesting today?”

“Of course not, it wasn’t a self-defense class day.” Bianca and Sofia both gave Vittoria a dry look at this, which just made the dark haired witch chuckle and return to her soup. 

“It was okay, I think I’m getting the hang of German finally.” Sofia said, smiling as she remembered the praise from her tutor, Herr Wagner. The Alpine Union had four official languages-Italian, German, Slovene, and French. They were the Wizarding dialects of said languages, but in theory they were still close enough to the Muggle equivalents to pass. She already knew Italian of course, but she was slowly working on the other three. Slovene and French she was still struggling with, but she thought she was finally making a breakthrough with German. 

“That’s good, being multilingual is always a good thing.” Bianca said. “Can’t always rely on Translation Wards.” Sofia nodded. Translation Wards were a type of magic that could, in theory, translate any language so that everyone heard what was being said in their own native language. Her language tutors had special rooms with these turned off for her lessons. But they were, much like the magic on the dining room that made it grow and equip itself with the proper furniture, hard to produce, requiring a lot of magic and a lot of surface for the runes to be carved into. The Alpine Union’s castles had them, as did some of the largest cities like Grand Combin, but towns and villages didn’t. 

“Also, uhm...Iwanttobeadopted.” Sofia mumbled very quickly, staring at her bowl of soup, still not touching her food. There was a long pause, and she looked up to see both women looking at her, their expressions unreadable. 

“What was that Sofia?” Bianca asked, voice soft and careful. Sofia swallowed. 

“I...I want to be adopted. Please. I’d like it very much.” Her eyes widened in alarm behind her glasses as she saw tears well up in Bianca’s eyes, and she looked quickly at Vittoria. The dark-haired witch was bouncing in her seat, and Sofia realized that if the dining room were bigger or there wasn’t soup and wine on the table she’d probably be dancing. Which meant Bianca’s tears probably weren’t bad tears…

“Of course dear.” Bianca said softly, reaching out and gently squeezing her hand. “Absolutely.” 

“That’s going to power like, a thousand patronuses in the future.” Vittoria declared happily, grinning as she got up, walked around the table and scooped Sofia up into a hug, making the girl squeak. Sofia didn’t protest or struggle though, too relieved at how well things were going. She hadn’t really thought that either of them would refuse, but a persistent little voice had told her to worry.

“Put her down Vittoria.” Bianca said, her voice amused though it sounded like she was still trying not to cry. “She still needs to eat, and we have to discuss names.” Vittoria made a grumbling noise that made Sofia giggle but set her back down in her chair all the same, returning to her own seat, still grinning. Then Sofia blinked. 

“Names?” She asked, looking between the two. 

“Yes, well, in Italy they don’t have the practice of ‘middle names’ or anything, but we do here.” Vittoria explained. “Think it’s a German influence thing.” She shrugged.

“Yes, more or less.” Bianca agreed, raising an eyebrow at Vittoria before turning to Sofia. “Vittoria and I...we have discussed this, as time went on and you seemed to still like living with us. And we thought of the name Aurora might suit you. If you like it that is.” Sofia paused, turning it over in her head, then nodded.

“I like it!” She agreed. Both women smiled at that, nodding.

“Good, we’re very glad to hear that. And of course, we don’t want to bury your parents either.” Bianca continued. “So, we were thinking that officially you’d be known as Princess Sofia Aurora Ricci Bellarosa. But if that’s too long, we can remove the Aurora…” Sofia shook her head, and blinked back some tears. Partly at the sound of Bianca attaching her own name to Sofia, and partly at the realization that she wouldn’t have to give up her parents’ name. She’d just assumed she’d have to and knowing that she wouldn’t was...a lot.

“I like it. Thank you.” Bianca nodded.

“Of course dear. We’d never ask you to give up your parents. Not ever.” Sofia nodded, remembering how shortly after the turn of the New Year Bianca had accompanied her and Vittoria in visiting her family’s farm. 

“Now then, let’s eat this soup quickly, cause I think I can already hear the House Elves working themselves up over a dessert to celebrate.” Vittoria said with a beam, getting a giggle from Sofia. 

The next three years proceeded to move in almost a blur, at least in Sofia’s opinion. 

Her adoption by the Queen and Princess was, to her slight dismay, a big deal. She’d known distantly that it would be, but there was a difference between sort of knowing something and being confronted with the ball thrown in celebration. Vittoria had sympathized, saying that she was never all that fond of the parties either but they were a part of being nobility, and in all honesty this was one of the better ways to start since there’d be less dancing expected of her and she was too young for match-making to start in earnest. 

It hadn’t been Sofia’s favorite night, but it hadn’t been the worst thing and the joy she had at being officially adopted outweighed everything else.

As she grew older of course, her lessons escalated in their intensity. She continued to learn the languages of the Alpine Union of course, her French slowly catching up with her German while her Slovene continued to lag. Every week she’d have two lessons with her mother (Bianca) and her mom (Vittoria)-politics and space with the former, and self-defense and magical theory with the latter. 

First was the history and nature of the Alpine Union. How it had started out with various Wizard tribes throughout the mountains banding together for trade and protection, then slowly spread to include the Goblin kingdom of the Mountains, forming a more close partnership between the two races than most others. She learned how they’d transitioned from an empire with an absolute monarch to a strange blend of democracy and monarchy that she couldn’t quite wrap her head around but seemed to please people enough that there’d never been any attempt at revolution. She learned about the mines, and the banks, and the ways the Goblins kept their own politics while still being part of the overall nation. 

She learned about the other nations of Wizarding Europe as well. That the Wizarding Republic of Italy was actually a fair bit smaller than Muggle Italy. Not only from the Alpine Union taking up much of Northern Italy, but from other countries. There was the Wizarding City of Venice, a small and independent city state just off the coast of the Alpine Union, which was one of the greatest sources of Wizarding art and crafting in Europe. And on the opposite side of the peninsula was the Mediterranean Confederation of Magic, an alliance of the city of Genoa, and the islands of Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, and Malta, who didn’t really like each other but disliked the idea of belonging to another nation more. And the city of Ravenna, which wasn’t a city state like Venice or Genoa but instead belonged to the Anniad Empire, a direct continuation of the Byzantine Empire apparently that also included Greece, Cyprus, and Crete.

She learned that the Muggle nations of Switzerland, Lichtenstein, and Slovenia all fell under the Alpine Union’s borders in their entirety, but that in Germany and France they stopped at the base of the mountains. That in 1429 the last Fisher King had launched an attack on the Alpine Union’s French holdings, and the two nations had locked in a stalemate until the arrival of the Phoenix Maiden, a vampire general in white Goblin made armor and mask who’d lead an army with adapted Muggle weapons and tactics the Wizarding World had never seen before, bringing devastation upon the Alpine armies and pushing them back to the base of their mountains. And then she’d swung north, attacking their holdings in what was now Switzerland. Afraid of further defeats, the Queen of the Alpine Union at the time struck a deal with the king of Magical Germany, Nibelungenland, trading their land past the base of the mountains in exchange for aid. 

The Phoenix Maiden had been unrelenting in her assault, but the combined forces of the Nibelungens and the Alpiners had cost enough that the last Fisher King had agreed to a peace treaty, relinquishing the land the Fisher Kingdom had gained in the Swiss region in return for keeping their French gains. The Alpine Union had withdrawn to their mountains, and the Fisher King was killed ten years later when the man decided to attempt to purge the vampires from his empire, the Phoenix Maiden becoming the Phoenix Queen and ruling to this day. 

Sofia found the stories of the war and of the Phoenix Queen herself fascinating, but at the same time she was glad they didn’t visit the border cities too often. None of the Wizarding Nations had gone to war with each other since the Statute of Secrecy had been put into effect, but still. That defeat was why, despite being much closer, students from the Alpine Union and Nibelungenland didn’t attend Beauxbatons, even today. 

She’d been very put out to find out that she couldn’t start actively learning magic beyond the theory until she was eleven. It was apparently a mixture of International Law, tied to the Statute of Secrecy, and more generally that it was the age when it was safest for a young witch or wizard to start actively trying to use magic. 

And aside from the history and politics of the region, she’d had to learn dancing, and courtly manners, and the proper way to address other nobles and visiting representatives of other governments, and Goblins. Goblin manners and etiquette were stiff, firm, and somewhat intimidating she found. But she did her best to learn them. She didn’t want to be rude after all. 

Self-defense with Vittoria was an entirely different thing than her other classes. Well, dancing was active, but not quite as much as what Vittoria put her through. Her mom put her through tumbling, and sprinting, and twirling, drilling into her that movement was key. She was a tough drill master, though never cruel, always taking the time to explain exactly how and why what she was teaching Sofia would be useful and why it mattered. The Wizards, Centaurs, and Veela fought at range, that Vampires were faster than her, and Goblin weapons tended to carry nasty side-effects, so she had to be moving and keeping an eye on everything. It’d be years before she got to the point where she could make shields strong enough to stand like a rock in a battlefield.

Space with Bianca was, in a rather stark contrast, rather relaxed. It was a hobby of her mother’s that fascinated the overworked queen, an interest that she was happy to share with Sofia but that wasn’t life or death, nor did it impact the kind of queen Sofia would one day be. It was just something interesting for Sofia to learn about and a way to spend time with her mother.

Everything changed though, when one morning a week before her eleventh birthday Sofia arrived for breakfast to find a letter with the Durmstrang crest sealing it in wax. She stared at it for a long moment, then looked up at her parents.

“I...didn’t know I’d be going to Durmstrang.” She said finally. Bianca raised an eyebrow at that, and she quickly continued. “I just mean...all my classes have just been one on one. Me and the tutor.”

“We think this would be good for you.” Vittoria said, glancing at Bianca. 

“Masters are hard to come by, for most branches of magic.” Bianca explained. “Masters that are good at teaching even more so. Durmstrang is the best place for you to learn. It’s where we went.” 

“The heirs to both Nibelungenland and the Anniad Empire will be present as well.” Vittoria said. “And the son of the current Head of State for Poland-Lithuania and the daughter of the current king of the Norscan Union.” Sofia blinked. The latter was an elective monarchy, comprising, well, all of Scandinavia and the home of Durmstrang, while the former was the largest purely democratic nation in Magical Europe. Both large, both put emphasis on the protection of the head of state. “So you won’t be the only person there with parents like us. It’ll be safe, and you won’t stand out too much.” Sofia frowned, but slowly nodded. 

“Well...okay…” She said, nodding as she read over the letter. It was a general acceptance letter, nothing too particularly special or noteworthy. Then she perked up. “Does this mean I can get a wand?” Her parents chuckled at that.

“Yes, I suppose it does.” Bianca said, nodding. “Klaus Gregorovitch, Mykew’s grandson, sent us a letter saying he’d rather like to be the one to match you to your wand not long after your adoption. We’ll reach out, and find a day when he can arrive that I’m free on.” Sofia blinked, surprised.

“Making a wand for royalty, saying that you personally crafted their wand, is a mark of pride for wand makers.” Vittoria explained. “Anything you do or accomplish, people will, to some extent, tie back to him. You wouldn’t believe the surge in popularity Ollivander wands got here in the mainland back when Dumbledore beat Grindelwald.” She chuckled. 

“Oh, I guess that makes sense.” Sofia said, nodding. She grinned. She was going to get a wand! She was going to be able to learn magic! Proper magic, not just the theory behind it! 

“Eat breakfast dear. Your wand’s not going to get here sooner if you don’t eat.” Bianca said, nudging her. Sofia blushed, nodding, and turning to her food. She bounced a little in her seat though, unable to help herself.

**At The Same Time**

Dumbledore slumped a little in his chair, looking over the automatic registrar Hogwarts produced for the upcoming First Years. “No Harriet?” Sirius asked, frowning. Dumbledore shook his head.

“I’m afraid not my friend. The protection still exists around the Dursley home, still dormant, so I don’t believe her to be dead. She’s simply deemed ineligible for Hogwarts.”

“Why would that be the case?” Sirius demanded. “She can’t have...have lost her magic, can she?” Dumbledore leaned back, mulling over the situation. 

He’d been hard at work since the Girl Who Lived had disappeared, trying to keep as on top of the search for Harriet as he could without neglecting his other duties. It had been tricky, but he’d managed to more or less take control of the rumor mill. Any mention of her distinct scar had been suppressed, and he’d helped to fuel the belief that she was being fostered somewhere in the northernmost part of Scotland, where she received secret training better than even what Hogwarts had to offer. 

Without knowing who, exactly, had access to Harriet he thought it best to downplay aspects of her story. If she was still with Muggles (and he had to imagine she would be, given that the Dursley’s had handed her over to a Muggle criminal organization) then he didn’t want an easy identifying mark like ‘lightning bolt scar on her forehead’ out there in the public consciousness. It would make it too easy for someone evil, or even just unscrupulous, to find her and steal her  _ again _ . And the rumors of her training would keep people from worrying when she didn’t show up for Hogwarts. 

He’d hoped Sirius would find her before her eleventh birthday, but he also knew the young man wasn’t trained for hunting on the Continent, and that tracking down Muggle criminals required different skills than Wizarding ones. So he’d planted the rumors early. If they’d found her, then the rumors would have faded away. If they hadn’t, then he’d prevented a national panic. 

“There are two possibilities, as I see it.” He said, finally, looking at Sirius. “The first is that someone has her in a particularly well warded and enchanted place, that blocks Hogwarts from finding her. I must confess that I find this unlikely, Hogwarts’ registrar is rather good at tracking down students even through the most warded of pureblood estates after all. But it is possible. What I find more likely though, is that whoever wound up taking her in had her name legally changed, and she’s been claimed by Beauxbatons or Durmstrang as a Muggleborn.” 

“I thought Durmstrang didn’t take in Muggleborns.” Sirius said with a frown. Dumbledore waved a hand.

“An old policy, abandoned in the wake of Grindelwald’s war in an effort to save face and prevent a public relations disaster.” 

“They expelled him though.” 

“They also taught him when he was at his most formative. That is all many would see. The rumors of this policy still exist of course. We here in Britain have never been too fond of or open in our relationships with the nations of the Continent, and it gets worse the further east you go. And of course, I rather imagine that the current headmaster and some of the richer members of society in Durmstrang’s district wouldn’t mind seeing that policy come back.” Dumbledore shrugged. “Though of course, it’s just as possible that she’s going to Beauxbatons, which has no such restrictions, historically or presently.” 

Sirius grunted, nodding and tapping his fingers on the chair. “I might want to focus there then, when term starts. I know you’re friendly with Madam Maxime, can she be trusted to know what we’re looking for?” Dumbledore let out a hum. 

“Perhaps. She knows I wouldn’t try to steal anything from her, and that she can trust someone I trust. You’d need to spend most of the time in your Animagus form though I’d imagine.” Sirius grunted. The fact that he, James, and Peter were/had been Animagi had come out during his trial, and Dumbledore had managed to get him registered (and James, posthumously) on the grounds of time served and the general ‘we sent him to Azkaban without a trial’ appeasement. 

“Fair enough. So long as her forehead isn't covered up I should be able to find her okay.” He paused. “And if she’s going to Durmstrang?”

“That will be trickier.” Dumbledore admitted. “But perhaps we’ll get lucky, who knows? One never knows what news the next day may bring.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody! Thank you all for reading! I hope y'all liked the new chapter!
> 
> So yeah, hammered out a lot of the broad strokes of the other nations of Wizarding Europe there. I don't know that any other chapter's going to go quite that heavy in terms of just exposition/lore dumping, but given Sofia's status it felt like it'd make sense for her to need to know all of this, and it felt best to simply slide over and through her lessons. 
> 
> Next chapter we'll be getting Sofia her wand, and unless I get attacked by rabid plot bunnies we'll be getting her to Durmstrang as well. Also, Dumbledore and Sirius are finally going to figure out where she is, though that's different from meeting her, let alone getting her back to Britain.
> 
> That's all for now! Thank you all so much for reading this! As always, feel free to comment if you have any questions/concerns/ideas/reviews!

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there everybody, and thank you for taking a moment to read this fic of mine! I hope you liked it! 
> 
> So yeah...Italy's where Harriet wound up. I tossed around a few different ideas in my head (I was more starting from 'Harry goes to Durmstrang' then 'Harry gets raised in 'X' country') and since Russia has its own school I decided to go with Italy and the Alps. If any of y'all would like to suggest some suitably Pureblood sounding Italian names (Harry's getting adopted in the next chapter) that'd be much obliged! 
> 
> Some points of order here. There will be no Dumbledore bashing, and there will be no Dark!Harry shenanigans. I know both, particularly the latter, are common in Durmstrang fics, but neither really appeals to me. Harry's going to be grumpy, certainly, and more ready to use lethal force than in canon. And her ambitions might not be things Dumbledore would approve of. But still, she's not going Dark. And while Dumbledore did fuck up, it's going to be addressed in more of a 'maybe if we didn't pin so much on one dude's shoulders this wouldn't have happened' way.
> 
> Anyway, thank you for reading, please feel free to comment if you want to leave a review, or if you have any questions, comments, or concerns!


End file.
